The former US president's press secretary has described the BBC as "100% fake news" and a "biased media outlet" in a forthright interview. This comes claims of partiality at the broadcaster.
White House Official Condemns BBC Coverage
Karoline Leavitt, a senior figure in the previous US government, stated that watching BBC news reports during trips to the UK "spoils" her day. She asserted that taxpayers are "forced to foot the bill for a liberal propaganda machine."
Controversy Over Altered Speech
The spokesperson's statements came after MPs said the corporation had "significant concerns to answer" regarding how a speech by the American leader was edited in a BBC Panorama documentary.
A document disclosed to a newspaper indicated that an installment of the news programme "completely misled" viewers by combining two parts of the oration together.
The broadcast showed the president saying he would walk with his followers to the Capitol prior to the riots on 6 January 2021, urging them to "fight like hell". Nevertheless, it omitted a section of the speech where he advised the assembly "to peacefully and patriotically make your voices heard".
“This intentionally deceptive, carefully cut footage from the BBC further proves they are entirely, 100% fake news, unworthy of airtime on the screens of the UK's admirable citizens.”
The press secretary continued: "Whenever I travel to the United Kingdom with President Trump and am forced to watch the BBC in our hotel rooms, it ruins my day listening to their overt propaganda and lies about the president of the United States and all that he’s doing to make America better and the world a safer place."
Leaked Document Emphasizes Editing Issues
The publication said its reporting was based on a memo authored by a ex- adviser to the BBC's editorial guidelines committee. The expert left his position recently and has not commented on the file, understood to have been leaked by a insider.
A passage published read: "It was completely misleading to edit the clip in the way Panorama aired it. The fact that he did not explicitly exhort supporters to go down and fight at Capitol Hill was one of the reasons there were no federal charges for incitement to riot."
Claims of Widespread Issues
The memo allegedly added that the ex-consultant had expressed worries about how BBC Arabic covered the war in Gaza.
The newspaper claimed the adviser asserted there were "systemic problems", which had not been addressed by senior management. He reportedly cited "clear disparities" between the coverage of the war on BBC Arabic and on the primary BBC site.
One matter highlighted was the repeated use of analysts who were prejudiced against Jewish people or supportive of the militant group.
Censure of Transgender Issues Reporting
The lengthy file is also reported to have faulted the BBC's coverage of gender identity matters, stating the network had been "influenced by a small group of [staff] promoting the Stonewall view" of gender identity issues and that its LGBT desk would "refuse to cover any stories raising difficult questions".
It is reported to have alleged that stories raising complex questions about trans issues were downplayed, with a "steady stream of one-sided stories celebrating the trans experience without adequate balance or objectivity".
BBC Response
In response, the BBC said: "While we don’t comment on leaked documents, when the BBC receives feedback it takes it seriously and considers it carefully."
"Michael Prescott is a former adviser to a board committee where differing views and opinions of our coverage are routinely discussed and debated.|He previously advised a panel where varied perspectives on our reporting are regularly examined and contested."
